Though I can´t speak for everyone, I think I can safely say that the group´s experience in Baños has been a potent combination of exhaustion, exploration, and chocolate.
Exhaustion because of our daily four hours of Spanish class, one on one with an instructor at Raices, Lorena´s spanish school. For those of you who don´t know, Lorena is our Ecuador contact/instructor/cook/homestay mom/all around superhero. As someone who came into this trip speaking basically zero Spanish (German, anyone?), speaking Spanish constantly with native speakers is incredibly taxing on the brain, but is the best way to learn. When you´re forced to spontaneously come up with the word for ¨spoon,¨ ¨may I,¨ or ¨where is the nearest bathroom?¨ it really encourages you to remember it for future use.
Our exploration of Baños has been incredible, too. Baños is a very small city, so it´s been fun really getting to know where we are and being able to navigate around by ourselves. Everything is centered around la iglesia, or the large basilica in the center of town made from volcanic rock, the plaza, which is adjacent to the basilica, and the parque, which is beautiful at night and a great place to meet for dinner. Today, we even got to go climb a waterfall that runs directly from the (active!) volcano and see the beautiful views of the mountains that surround Baños. We are also enjoying the break from the mosquitos of Santo Domingo.
Right around the corner from Raices, there is a chocolate store at which we are now regulars. Do not be surprised if we return thirty pounds heavier than when we left.
All in all, Baños has been good to us, and we can´t wait for our free weekend to try out some of the popular adventure destinations in Baños. Hasta Luego!
